Thor Odinson is an Asgardian warrior-prince, the God of Thunder, superhero and a self-proclaimed protector of Earth. Thor made a name for himself as the mightiest warrior on his homeworld Asgard and subsequently became well known for his actions on Earth, which included acting as a founding member of the Avengers. He is the son of Asgardian king Odin and stepbrother of his archenemy Loki.

First appearing in Thor, Thor is a major character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the only Avenger of alien origin and arguably one of the most powerful beings in the universe. Thor wields the mystical war hammer Mjölnir, which controls the weather, but he himself also has godlike strength, durability and agility.

Contents

Biography

Early Life

Thor had an idyllic childhood, brought up in Asgard, a futuristic Viking kingdom, as the treasured son of Odin and his wife Frigga. His best friend and playmate was his adopted brother Loki, and though they were rivals for their father's throne, they still remained close companions.

Brought up in the warrior culture of the Asgardians, Thor valued strength, courage, and loyalty above all else. He desired to be exactly like his father the war hero, and often remarks on the monsters he will slay and the wars he will win when he is king. Thor would be worshiped as a deity of strength and courage among Scandinavian cultures.

He proves himself a great warrior, often leading his band of warriors (which includes Loki, the Lady Sif, and the Warriors Three) on adventures. However, he is also known to be reckless. This becomes evident when Loki jokingly reminds him that he would be dead had he not used a smoke veil to ease their escape during one battle.

Although Odin chose him as his heir, he openly remarked that he thought Thor was a "vain, greedy, cruel boy" after Thor started an ill-advised war against the Frost Giants. It is later revealed that Loki feels that he, himself was never in contention for the throne because of his Frost Giant heritage. Regardless of his boyish attitude, Thor was the elder brother, and so was always meant to be king.

The Avengers Initiative

Thor tried to save a group of Dwarves and has to fight Imir to do so. He triumphed over Imir and set the Dwarves free.

In present day, a ceremony in Asgard is about to let Thor ascend to the Throne of Asgard, as Odin is about to finally enter the Odinsleep after putting it off for so long. Thor revels in the ceremony and undergoes the passage of becoming King from Odin. As Odin is about to name Thor King, he senses that Frost Giants have snuck into Asgard and into Odin's Vault to steal the Casket of Ancient Winters. Unbeknownst to everyone, Loki has let the Jotun Frost Giants in, to interrupt the coronation purposely. Odin, Thor and Loki go to the vault to find that the three Frost Giants have killed two Einerjar, before being slain by the Destroyer. Thor insists that Asgard must send an army to Jotunheim as Odin did before him, though he is forbidden to do so. Later, Thor gathers his friends Sif and the Warriors Three and disobeys Odin's orders to force answers out of Laufey, king of Jotunheim.

Convincing Heimdall, the warrior who guards the Bifrost, Thor and his allies visit Jotunheim to interrogate Laufey without success. Thor's pride forces him to begin a battle with the Jotuns which leaves many of them dead or vengeful. Odin arrives just in time to save Thor and the others before they are outnumbered. Thor's actions lead Laufey to threaten Asgard with a new war. As punishment for his actions Thor is stripped of his mighty hammer Mjölnir and his godlike strength and banished to Earth where he is forced to live as a mortal. Thor lands in New Mexico and is hit by a truck driven by researchers Jane Foster, Erik Selvig and Darcy Lewis. Thor is tazered by Darcy when she feels "freaked out" by his behavior.

Thor wakes in a hospital bed where he thinks he is being held captive. He eventually escapes and meets Jane Foster again, who wants to speak to him on how he ended up in the storm which brought him to Earth. Thor is instantly attracted to Jane and overhears a conversation between to two men who claim to have been trying to remove a satellite from a crater in the desert. He realizes this is in fact Mjölnir. Thor is accused by Selvig of being insane due to his claims to be the Son of Odin and is compelled to leave them. However, fate allows him to bump into Jane again, who drives him to the crater where the intelligence agency S.H.I.E.L.D. are investigating the hammer. Thor uses his Asgardian warrior skills to fight past dozens of agents until he reaches Mjölnir, but finds that he cannot lift the hammer because it has deemed him unworthy. Thor is imprisoned by Phil Coulson and speaks with a vision of Loki, who deceives Thor by telling him that Odin is dead and Thor's banishment has been upgraded to a permanent exile, which was conditional for the truce with Jotunheim. Thor enters a state of depression until he is freed by Erik Selvig, who tells the agents that Thor is a former physician named Donald Blake. Selvig then tells Thor that he fears for Jane, should Thor continue seeking a relationship with her. Reluctantly, Thor agrees that he will leave town, the following day. After a night of drunken revelry with Selvig, Thor returns to Jane and gives her a fraction of her research which S.H.I.E.L.D. had stolen. He then explains to her about his godhood, Asgard and the Nine Realms and, for the first time, feels comfortable as a mortal man.

The next day, Thor's friends the Warriors Three and Sif arrive to bring him home, explaining that Odin is alive and Loki has claimed leadership over Asgard. Loki sends the Destroyer after Thor, leveling the small town. When the Asgardians fail to defeat the Destroyer, Thor offers his life to the automaton to save the Earth. A blow from the Destroyer kills Thor' mortal form, restoring his worthiness to wield Mjölnir and reclaim his powers. Thor defeats the Destroyer and promises Phil Coulson an alliance. Thor sets out to return to Asgard, promising Jane that he will return for her and giving her a passionate kiss before leaving. Thor reveals Loki's plot to their mother Frigga and battles Loki on the Bifrost, which is slowly destroying Jotunheim with its power. Thor chooses to save the Jotuns by shattering the rainbow bridge and thus destroying the Bifrost. Odin arrives just in time to save Loki and Thor from falling into space. Loki, knowing his actions have not earned him the respect he wanted, allows himself to fall into the abyss while Thor cries out for his brother.

Thor mourns Loki's apparent death and longs to see Jane again, knowing he cannot as long as the Bifrost is gone. He makes amends with his father, saying the quote from the top of this wiki page, then speaks with Heimdall about the likelihood of returning to Earth, to which Heimdall only offers hope.

Black Widow Strikes

Thor was on S.H.I.E.L.D. screens as a possible candidate for the Avengers Initiative.

Heimdall noted that the destruction of the Bifrost "continues to shift the balance of power across the nine realms...and into the worlds beyond Yggdrasil."

Thor realized that by saving Jotunheim, he had weakened the other realms. Odin indicated that this has brought the universe closer to Ragnarok. As Odin left to meet with Tyr, Heimdall asked Thor if he wanted to know what was happening with Jane on Earth, Thor stated that he would like to know but not at that moment.

One year later, Thor's mother discovered that Loki was alive and seeking the Tesseract. Heimdall confirmed Loki being alive and informed Thor that the search for the Tesseract had led to Earth. Thor decided to stop Loki but couldn't because the Bifrost was destroyed. However, Odin knew another way. Odin used dark energy to send Thor to Earth, landing in a forest.

When Asgard discovers Loki is upon Earth, wielding the Chitauri Scepter and seeking the Tesseract, Odin uses dark sorcery to send Thor to Earth to stop him. Thor lands on the jet in which Loki is being escorted back to the Helicarrier by Captain America, Iron Man and Black Widow, and takes Loki from their custody. Thor tries to convince Loki to give up his plans and return home to Asgard with the Tesseract, though Loki is under duress by Thanos, to succeed with an invasion of Earth. In spite of Thor's insistence on their brotherhood, Loki still resents him. Iron Man attacks Thor and the two trade blows when Iron Man refuses to allow Thor to take Loki away. When Captain America intervenes, he points out that they shouldn't be fighting each other, and asks Thor to put Mjölnir down. In response, Thor brings his hammer down on Captain America, who blocks it with his shield. The shield absorbs the impact, shocking Thor, who realizes they have the same goal and stops fighting.

They return to the SHIELD Helicarrier, where Loki is put into a cell designed to hold and the Hulk and dispose of him if necessary. Thor is quick to point out that while Loki is unstable he is still his adoptive brother. Later he asks Coulson about Jane Foster and is told that she was moved to a secure location when Loki returned and Erik Selvig was put under his control. Thor is asked by Fury if he is capable of inflicting torture on Loki to reveal his goals. Later as Thor and the others argue, Loki's mind controlled henchmen blow up one of the Helicarrier's engines and help free Loki, also triggering Banner to unwillingly transform into the Hulk. Thor fights the Hulk, being the only one who can match him in strength. After the Hulk has been led off of the Helicarrier, Thor goes to make sure Loki is still contained. When he arrives the cell door is open, and Thor tries to stop Loki leaving. It turns out to be an illusion and Thor gets trapped in the cell. Loki threatens to drop the cage when Coulson confronts him with a gun made from the Destroyer. Loki stabs Coulson and proceeds to drop Thor. As he plummets towards Earth, Thor manages to smash free from the cell just in time to avoid the impact.

It is found by Black Widow and Hawkeye, that a hit to the head can remove the mind-control inflicted by the Chitauri Scepter. Once a character takes a hit to the head (assuming they are not concussed or unconscious) the glowing, Tesseract-colored eyes revert to a character's natural eye-color.

After recovering from the fall, Thor uses Mjölnir's powers to replenish his strength before he heads to New York city to confront Loki. Arriving at Stark Tower, Loki has used the Tesseract to open a portal allowing the Chitauri to invade Earth. Thor again tries to convince him to stop, since the Chitauri are destroying the world he wants to rule. Failing, he briefly clashes with his brother before Loki flees on a Chitauri vessel. Thor joins Captain America, Black Widow and Hawkeye on the battlefield, and starts helping to fight the Chitauri, before Iron Man and Hulk join them. Captain America orders Thor to use his power to stem the flow of enemies coming through the portal, which he does using lightning bolts. He then joins the battle once more and helps Hulk bring down a Leviathan. Soon Iron Man sends a nuclear missile intended for the city through the portal. This destroys the Chitauri base, causing the forces to be cut off from their power source and die, while Black Widow closes the portal.

Once the crisis is over, Thor joins the other Avengers in confronting Loki, who had already been beaten into submission by the Hulk, and takes him into custody. After claiming the Tesseract, Thor takes Loki back to Asgard, by opening a portal with it and leaves the other Avengers in Central Park.

After joining the Avengers to counter the extraterrestrial invasion of New York, Thor returned Loki and the Tesseract to Asgard, leaving Loki to face justice and using the Tesseract to rebuild the Bifrost. He then rallies his fellow Asgardians, including Sif, the Warriors Three and the Einherjar, to help him protect the Nine Realms and join him in battle against the Marauders, who are attacking Vanaheim.

Tony Stark states to his girlfriend Pepper Potts that the events of the Battle of New York changed his experiences, saying that "gods, aliens [and] other dimensions" were beyond his understanding, clearly referencing Thor and Loki. While Stark was being held in captivity, Aldrich Killian mentioned Thor, stating that ever since he appeared on Earth, "subtlety had its day".

Thor saved Sif and his friends in a battle in Vanaheim, before destroying a Kronan with a single blow of Mjölnir and scaring the rest of the Marauders into submission. After the battle, Thor told Hogun that he should stay with his people because Asgard could wait. Hours later, when Odin was watching the Asgardian soldiers train with Sif, Thor came to speak with him. Odin insisted he had now earned the throne and should take it, but Thor declined. At the celebration, Thor was lonely seeing everybody else enjoying themselves while he missed Jane Foster. Thor left the celebrations to see Heimdall and check on Jane. When Thor talked with Heimdall about the Convergance, Heimdall then checks on Jane but cannot see her (as she has been momentarily sucked into a portal and so becomes host to the Aether). Afraid that she might be in danger, Thor goes to earth.

Thor arrived on Earth where he found Jane, Darcy Lewis and Ian Boothby. Jane walked over to him and slapped him twice, the first to check if he was real, the second because Thor didn't visit her when he came to Earth to stop Loki using the Tesseract. Thor told her that he didn't have time to visit her because of the war of the realms. As Jane was about to be arrested the Aether repelled the policeman. Worried about her, Thor took her to Asgard to be examined by Eir.

Odin walked in as Jane was being looked over and was angry that Thor was so uncouth as to bring a mortal to Asgard. He demanded that Jane should be sent back to Earth, but when Einherjar tried to seize her, the Aether repelled them. Odin recognized the power and explained the story of the Dark Elves to Jane and Thor, now agreeing that Jane should stay in Asgard.

The next morning, Thor and Jane woke up and Jane was amazed by the view of Asgard. Later they went for a walk and Thor explained the story of the Convergence. As he explained, Kurse broke the the prisoners out of the dungeon, so Thor went to stop the destruction. Thor returned to check on his mother and Jane, only to see Malekith kill Frigga. He shouted in grief, and furiously attacked Malekith, but the Dark Elf escaped with the help of Kurse but not before Thor scarred the right side of his face with a thunderbolt from his hammer. Thor attended his mother's funeral that night. Loki was kept in the dungeons, unable to attend.

Thor tried to talk to Odin and persuade him of an alternative to staying and waiting for the Elves to come back, but Odin refused. Heimdall, Volstagg, Fandral and Sif agreed to help Thor break Jane and Loki out of Asgard, in an effort to save the Nine Realms from Malekith. Thor visited Loki, who was hell bent on vengeance for his 'mother'. Thor devised a plan to defeat Malekith: he would follow Malekith to Svartalfheim, force him to separate the Aether from Jane, and then destroy it himself.

After a daring escape, Thor and Loki reached Svartalfheim in a commandeered stealth ship left behind by the elves, while Jane, who was also with them, slipped into unconsciousness. When the pair reached Malekith, Loki tricked the elves into believing that he had severed Thor's hand and then turned Jane over to them. Malekith proceeded to extract the Aether from her, but when the brothers dropped their ruse so that Thor could destroy it, Malekith absorbed it into himself instead. During the ensuing battle, the brothers fought Algrim/Kurse together, but Loki was dealt a grievous blow in the process of delivering his final attack. Thor went to his dying brother's side, after the fight, and promised to tell Odin that Loki had died a hero.

Thor and Jane chased Malekith back to Earth, where they combined efforts with Dr. Selvig and the interns to stop the dark elf from plunging all of the realms back into darkness. Although the fight was a long and difficult one, Jane's expertise eventually saw Malekith shunted out of Earth's dimension and back to Svartalfheim where he was crushed by his own ship. Duty-bound as Asgard's protector, and needing to face up to his treasonous actions, Thor was forced to leave his love and return to Asgard again. But instead of returning to another stern dressing down, he found that his actions had earned him a pardon and also a further gift. He requested that he be allowed to return to Jane. In light of the boldness of the request, he also offered to hand over Mjolnir, but Odin quietly refused it before letting him go. Unknown to Thor, Loki is disguised as Odin. Thor then returns to Earth and reunites with Jane.

Character traits

Thor starts out as a brash, young, and arrogant prince who defies the will of his father and places his selfish needs before that of those around him. Due to his mighty power and appearance, he felt that he was entitled to rule with an iron fist. However, once he arrives on earth and meets Jane Foster, who shows him kindness and love, Thor is smitten and begins to develop a humble and compassionate heart. It should also be noted that, by the time of The Avengers, likely as a result of her influence, he has developed something of a sense of humor.

As is the case with most Asgardians, Thor possesses superhuman physical attributes, namely strength, speed, stamina, and reflexes. Due to his training and experience, he has become extremely skillful with weapons. His weapon of choice is the all-powerful Mjölnir, with which he is able to control lightning and electricity, as well as use it proficiently as a blunt instrument.

Powers and Abilities

Powers

As the first born son of Odin the Allfather, Thor is extremely powerful, and possesses a number of superhuman attributes common among the Asgardian gods. However, some are considerably more developed than those of the vast majority of his race. Thor is currently one of the most powerful beings on the planet as well as one of the most powerful beings in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Second in Asgard only to his father. He has overpowered Frost Giants, hundreds of warriors, defeated his brother Loki who was armed with Odin's spear Gungnir (that said to act as a conduit to channel the Odin Force), and a giant Frost Monster. Thor is a Norse warrior-god, trained and skilled in the arts of battle, with centuries of experience. As a deity, he has been associated with the weather, strength, bravery and fertility. Thor has usually been shown to rely solely on his superior fighting ability, super strength, and invulnerability. While on Earth, Thor greatly withholds his power unless fighting someone with similar strength and durability.

Superhuman Strength: Thor is physically the strongest Asgardian, possessing vast superhuman strength, the full limits of which aren't known. However, he easily flipped a ceremonial table full of food and dishware that weighed at least several hundred pounds. He knocked a Frost Giant several meters into the sky which only stopped when it hit the mountain side. He knocked another Frost Giant to the ground with a single blow from Mjlonir and then kicked it several meters away from him. He knocked out several Frost Giants with only a single blow each and on occasion has even knocked out multiple Frost Giants with a single blow at the same time. He possessed enough strength to kill a Frost Monster with a single blow, the act in question saving his friends. Thor also went toe-to-toe with the all powerful Destroyer. Thor knocked Loki through the Bifrost monitor walls in their battle. He was also able to destroy the Bifrost bridge when it was frozen to stay open and threatened to destroy Jotunheim. He was able to battle hordes of Frost Giants with great ease. In his battle against a supercharged Iron Man, Thor managed to gain the upper hand. With Mjölnir, he was able to hold off against the Hulk for a long time. It should also be noted that during his battle with the Hulk, Thor's blows were easily capable of staggering and in some cases knocking the Hulk around, something very few being have been shown to be capable of. He was able to battle the hordes of Chitauri foot soldiers throughout New York. Along with Mjölnir and with one simple strike, he was able to flip a car over, killing several Chitauri soldiers. He also broke out of a container S.H.I.E.L.D. created to contain the Hulk. His strength extends his ability to leap distances far in excess of human capability as shown twice. The first time was when he charged at Loki in the Bifrost Bridge chamber and went through the wall. The second time was when he charged at Captain America with Mjölnir in the forest.

Superhuman Stamina: Thor's advanced musculature is considerably more efficient than that of a human and most other Asgardians. As a result, his muscles produce practically no fatigue toxins during physical activity compared to those of humans and most other members of his race. His virtually inexhaustible stamina enables him to exert himself at peak capacity for an undefined period of time without tiring at all.

Superhuman Durability: Thor's skin, muscle, and bone tissue are several times denser then that of a normal human's, contributing to his superhuman weight. At full power he is invulnerable to powerful energy blasts, weighted impacts, falls from great heights, explosions and various other opposing forces. Even when he was stripped of his powers, he was still amazingly durable due to his dense body. He was hit twice by Jane Foster's truck and even though he was knocked down, he showed no visible damage after getting up. He withstood several blows from S.H.I.E.L.D. operatives and when he was eventually captured the only visible damage was a small bruise on his forehead. Thor has even been struck by the enraged Hulk multiple times and showed no signs of damage, only little discomfort. When he is at full power or armed with Mjölnir, Thor possesses invulnerability. He has withstood a direct blow to the face from a massive Frost Giant and laughed afterward. He survived a direct, near point blank range blast from Gungnir blasting him out of Odin's chamber, falling several hundred meters to the ground and still showed no visible signs of injury. He was struck in the face by Loki wielding Gungnir and showed only anger and annoyance as a result. He was able to withstand a full-on strike from a supercharged Iron Man and showed no sign of damage. Also, Captain America hit him and Iron Man in the head with his shield to get their attention and stop them from fighting , after which there was no visible damage. The Hulk however, did manage to give him a nosebleed during a fistfight.

Superhuman Immunity: When he is at full power or armed with Mjölnir, Thor possesses immunity to human ailments as diseases, toxins, poisons, corrosion, fire, electrocution, asphyxiation, lead and radiation poisoning.

Superhuman Speed: Thor can move at extreme speeds. He can fly across the New Mexico desert in a matter of seconds. He can also swing Mjölnir at speeds so great that it seems like a blur to the naked eye. He was able to tackle the Hulk through a wall in the Helicarrier before the Hulk would strike the Black Widow and looked like a blur

Superhuman Agility: Thor's agility, balance, and bodily coordination make him a great warrior in battle. He moves with incredible grace and speed despite his size and body density. He was able to dodge the wing of a jet fighter thrown at him by the Hulk while they battled in the hangar bay.

Accelerated Healing Factor: Despite his astounding resistance to injury, it is possible to injure Thor. After seemingly being killed by the Destroyer and proving himself worthy of Mjölnir, Thor regained his full power and immediately healed himself in seconds. Seconds after being stabbed in the stomach by Loki using Gungnir on the Bifrost bridge, Thor calls forth a thunderbolt with Mjölnir knocking down Loki and stands up completely healed. He was also stabbed by one of Loki's throwing knives but it did little more than distract and annoy him.

Superhuman Longevity: Thor, like all other Asgardians, is not truly immortal as it is possible to kill an Asgardian and other beings in the Nine Realms. It is more accurate to say that Asgardians are extremely long lived beings. Thor ages at a pace far slower than a humans. He is more than likely born shortly before the last Great War between the Asgardians and the Jotuns. Making him at least 1300 years old. Mortals' life spans are comparable to the blink of an eye to him.

Abilities

Master Hand-To-Hand Combatant: Thor is the one of the greatest and most powerful warrior in Asgard. Second only to Odin, he is one of the most skilled fighters to ever walk the planet. Thor is trained in the arts of war and various fighting techniques by his teachers in Asgard. He is an expert marksman, and is masterful in all areas of combat, including hand-to-hand and various forms of weaponry available in Asgard with over centuries of combat experience. He is known to be very cunning and intuitive in battle, having fought and defeated over a hundred warriors in Nornheim and battled hordes of Frost Giants with great ease in Jotunheim. He was able to fight and gain the advantage with nearly a dozen S.H.I.E.L.D. operatives, while powerless and mortal and deprived of Mjölnir, with only his vast fighting skills - note, he beat every single one of them with only his bare hands and raw physical strength. Coulson stated that "he made his men, some of the most highly trained professionals in the world look like a bunch of minimum wage mall cops." He was able to maneuver around the larger Hulk and strike him with ease.

Master Hammer Fighter: After centuries of practice wielding his hammer, Thor has become masterful in fighting with Mjölnir and is proficient in hammer throwing. He can even block energy shots with Mjölnir, from both Loki's staff and Chitauri weaponry.

Master Tactician: For over thousands of years, he has led Asgard and his friends into battle against forces with great leadership. Employing strategies and tactics from possibly every culture on Earth, as well as all the Nine Worlds of Asgard (including forgotten ones). However, quite unlike Captain America and (Ironically) Loki, Thor prefers to explode on to the battlefield and smash his enemies to rubble than utilise cunning strategies, even if he is very capable of the latter.

Weapon

Mjölnir: Thor has been entrusted with the mighty hammer Mjölnir, that was forged from the heart of a dying star. Thor's mystical hammer Mjölnir, which resembles a mallet rather than a war hammer, has a number of elemental powers. It has been stated by Odin himself that Mjölnir's power has no equal. Mjölnir itself is extremely durable like the Earth metal Adamantium, and, combined with the various enchantments placed upon it by Odin, it is, for all intents and purposes, indestructible. It has deflected three blast from the Destroyer (which was able to disintegrate anything that it hit) and return the blast back into the Destroyer. Thor often uses the hammer as a physical weapon, with almost nothing being capable of withstanding a hammer blow or throw (with the exception of Captain America's Shield). A few examples of the abilities Thor has shown with Mjölnir are:

Mjölnir Abilities

Weather Control: Wielding Mjönir grants Thor the ability to control the basic elements of a storm. It can control the elements and can create giant raging electrical storms complete with thunder, lightning, hurricane-force winds, tornadoes, tidal waves, earthquakes, and torrential rains on a moment's notice. He summoned a class 5 tornado to battle the Destroyer, a lightning bolt strong enough to destroy a large piece of landscape in Jotunheim and a lightning bolt to knock down Loki on the Bifrost bridge. He was also able to strike Iron Man with a bolt of lighting, but it should be noted that all it did was charge his suit with additional power. He was able to strike Chitauri soldiers and a Leviathan down. The Norse myths and legends regarded him as a Thunder God because of the hammer's influence over weather.

Lightning: Thor's main weapon using Mjölnir is a lightning bolt or thunderbolt. He summoned a lightning bolt strong enough to destroy a large piece of landscape in Jotunheim, a lightning bolt to knock down Loki on the Bifrost bridge, shot a lightning bolt at Iron Man that boosted his armor's power reserve to +400% and took down a Chitauri with a single thunderbolt. Thor also shot a massive lightning bolt at the portal of the Chitauri to prevent anymore re-enforcements.

Worthiness Enchantment: After Thor disobeyed Odin and nearly caused a war between Asgard and Johtumheim, Odin banished Thor to Earth without his powers. Odin also placed an enchantment on the hammer Mjölnir. "Who so ever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of Thor." This enchantment surrounding Mjölnir prevents it from being wielded by anyone save those who have been found worthy. When Thor sacrificed himself to protect Earth from The Destroyer he proved himself worthy to wield Mjölnir and gained full use of his powers. In The Avengers, not even the Hulk's incredible strength could lift Mjölnir.

Material Transformation: By summoning lightning from the sky into Mjölnir, Thor's uniform was transformed into his battle armor.

Mystical Link: Mjölnir obeys Thor's commands as though it were alive. Mjölnir went to Thor when it was in a crater from miles away. It came to him in seconds. Mjölnir will return to Thor when he throws it at an opponent. In The Avengers, while battling the Hulk in a hanger of the Helicarrier, Thor summoned Mjölnir from another room and it came crashing through the Helicarrier to get to him.

Flight: Thor is capable of hurling Mjölnir with great force and, by holding onto the leather thong, is capable of flying through the air at tremendous speed. How fast is not specified, but he was able to fly at tremendous speed in Johtumheim to kill a Frost Monster, fly in the middle of a Class 5 tornado, fly from the small New Mexico town to the closet Bifrost site, fly from Heimdall's Observatory to the main hall of Asgard and later from the hall back to Heimdall's Observatory. All of this in mere seconds. Thor is also seen flying during The Avengers, mainly when he fought against Iron Man and during the battle of New York.

Speed: Thor is capable of hurling Mjölnir at great speed. In the movie, Thor, he bashes the Frost Giants around him, then throws Mjölnir, making it hit multiple Frost Giants in it's path in mere moments.

Energy Projection: With Mjölnir, Thor can project blasts, waves and bolts of electricity and lightning of various sizes and intensities. While the hammer can generate electrical energy, it can channel more energy from the lightning storms it creates to summon its lightning for powerful energy attacks. With Mjölnir, Odin projects a powerful beam of golden light, using it to take away all of Thor's superhuman powers and destroys what was left of Thor's armor after stripping much of it off of him. It also blasted Thor through the air at great speed and into the Bifrost.

Behind the scenes

Hemsworth stated that he gained 20 pounds for the role by eating non-stop and revealed that "It wasn't until Thor that I started lifting weights, it was all pretty new to me."

Regarding his take of the character, Hemsworth said, "We just kept trying to humanize it all, and keep it very real. Look into all the research about the comic books that we could, but also bring it back to 'Who is this guy as a person, and what's his relationship with people in the individual scenes?'"

About approaching Thor's fighting style, he remarked, "First, we looked at the comic books and the posturing, the way [Thor] moves and fights, and a lot of his power seems to be drawn up through the ground. We talked about boxers, you know, Mike Tyson, very low to the ground and big open chest and big shoulder swings and very sort of brutal but graceful at the same time, and then as we shot stuff things became easier."

Hemsworth stated that he was able to maintain the strength he built up for Thor by increasing his food intake, consisting of a number of chicken breasts, fish, steak, and eggs a day. When asked exactly how much, Hemsworth joked, "My body weight in protein pretty much!"

Chris Hemsworth has commented briefly on the friction between The Avengers, focusing specifically on Thor and Captain America. "They're used to being leaders and if you put them all in a room, it's going to be about who runs the show," he said. "They all have some friction, absolutely, but it's about the journey of the team. However, the main reason for the team coming to blows is apparently a fairly simple one.The villainous Loki and his mysterious "alien" army. Thor has a different opinion about how this should be taken care of, because it's his brother," the actor revealed. "I think it's heartbreaking, because he feels very responsible for why Loki has spiraled off. He keeps trying to appeal to whatever good was once there."

Chris Hemsworth Calls The Avengers "Misfits." "There's a maturity to the character because of the journey he went on, certainly. He was a petulant sort of kid at the beginning of Thor, and by the end of it hopefully you walk away thinking that he is matured and there was a grounded quality to him that wasn't there before. There are certainly moments where Thor says things and there's a sideways glance from everybody: 'What the hell is this guy talking about?' He's not quite the odd one out as much as he was in Thor. These guys... one of them wears an iron suit, one of them turns into a big, green monster. They all have these crazy personalities, and alter egos. They're misfits, and that's how they fit, in a funny way."

The two final choices for the role of Thor were Chris Hemsworth and his younger brother Liam Hemsworth.

Trivia

Before Chris Hemsworth was cast as Thor, Brad Pitt was rumored for the role of Thor; Channing Tatum and WWE wrestler Triple H were also considered for the part; Daniel Craig was the first choice; and Charlie Hunnam, Tom Hiddleston, Alexander Skarsgård, Chris Hemsworth's younger brother Liam Hemsworth and Joel Kinnaman tested for the role. Hiddleston would later be cast as Loki in the film.

The Marvel Comics character was adapted from the mythological Thunder God of the same name by Stan Lee, Larry Leiber and Jack Kirby.

The scene where Coulson finds Thor's hammer Mjölnir is shown after the credits in Iron Man 2. The scene was added to Iron Man 2 to continue Marvel's tradition of including tie-ins to the other sub-franchises in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Thor's human alias is Donald Blake in the comics. In the film, when Thor arrives on earth, Jane gives him clothing attire that once belonged to her ex-boyfriend Donald Blake. Later when Thor is captured and interrogated by Phil Coulson, Erik Selvig appears and informs Coulson that Thor is actually Donald Blake a member of his scientific staff. An agent confirms it by running a background check in the computer database and turns up a falsified document created by Jane of Thor assuming the identity of Dr. Donald Blake.

Sif is also Thor's lover and main love interest in the comics, not just a friend or a teammate.

It is stated in The Avengers that Thor was able to get back to Earth thanks to the powers of Odin; however, Loki commented that Odin would have had to "summon up" a lot of "dark energy." This suggests that this action may be tiring, and possibly even dangerous or frowned upon by Odin, and was likely why the Bifrost meant so much to the Asgardians.

Thor's costume in Thor more closely resembles Oliver Coipel's sleeved redesign from J. Michael Straczynski's Thor miniseries rather than Jack Kirby's art. His trademark helmet is worn only once in the film, at the ceremony celebrating his would-be ascent to the throne of Asgard.

Although being primarily based on the Marvel Universe version of the character created by Stan Lee, Larry Leiber and Jack Kirby, The MCU version of Thor also shares some traits with the "Ultimate Marvel Universe" version of Thor. Both versions of the character go for a bearded look with no trademark helmet and neither have a human alter-ego as in the classic comics. Both are also accused of being a madman when claiming to be the God of Thunder.

In The Avengers, when Thor first appears on Earth, his 'costume' is a variant of his Thor costume and resembles the classic Thor design by Jack Kirby, with no sleeves and his trademark cape. Later in the film, when on the Helicarrier, his costume nods towards the Ultimate version of the character based on art by Brian Hitch, which had no cape, no sleeves and stripped-down armour. In the third act of the film, Thor summons lightning which magically completes his armor, adding his armor, discs and chainmail sleeves as he looked in Thor, based on the 2007 redesign by Oliver Coipel. Whereas his Thor costume was black with silver discs, his suit in The Avengers is more blue-coloured with much of the armor on his torso being silver. As Thor: The Dark World took more visual influence from Norse culture, Thor's outfit from then contained more chainmail and leather, and bronze-coloured discs. His uniform in Avengers: Age of Ultron appears to be a minor variation on this costume.

Thor's debut film was the first in the Marvel Cinematic Universe so explore ancient mythology, space travel and extraterrestrial life. These ideas are continued through Captain America: The First Avenger and The Avengers.